FLAT ROCK, Mich. – The newest generation of the Mustang will roll off the line Saturday at Ford's Auto Alliance plant in Flat Rock.
Around 1,400 new workers were needed to make the launch a success. With the help of a $5 million federal grant, Ford is investing $35 million to train its employees in order to have higher-skilled workers as an antidote to outsourcing.
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"I was doing robot welding by hand," said Damon Plasencia, an Auto Alliance employee. "It gave me scars on my hand and across my belly from the weld splatter."
After three difficult and highly demanding months in Auto Alliance's new training program, Plasencia is now a robot supervisor.
These employees, who Flat Rock's plant manager Michael Boneham calls "gold collar" workers, will deliver five different models off two different platforms.
Ford said that this high-tech training will not only give workers greater personal satisfaction, but it will also give their customers greater product satisfaction because improved productivity lets Ford be more competitive on price.
Ford, Auto Alliance and others involved have also started vocational training at the high school level at the Flat Rock plant.
"It's very relevant to them," said Downriver Career Technical Consortium Director Malin Wagner. "They see the (relationship) between the real world and how it ties into academics."
For more information, check out these Web sites: www.autoalliance.com and Ford Media.com.